Author Archives: Geoffrey Kleinman

Dark Corner Moonshine

Don’t Be Afraid of Dark Corner Distillery Moonshine

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Dark Corner Moonshine

You’d think a Moonshine from a place called Dark Corner Distillery would be some sort of fiery cauldron of a spirit that puts hair on your chest and separates the men from the boys. It isn’t. There are a lot of misconceptions around moonshine, a distinctively American spirit whose roots lie more in early settlers’ farmhouse stills and corn whiskey than the backwoods outlaws who helped give the spirit its bad boy mystique.

Traditionally, moonshine referred to any spirit that was manufactured illegally – many of these spirits were corn or sugar based, and often based on a family recipe passed down from generation to generation. With the boom of micro-distillers, moonshine has come out of the proverbial dark corner and into legally produced bottles on store shelves.

Much of the moonshine on the market is unaged corn whiskey, very similar to the raw spirit which is put into barrels, aged, and transformed into American whiskey like Maker’s Mark and Jack Daniels. Unaged corn whiskey is focused more on the true corn flavors and doesn’t have the cinnamon, caramel, and spice notes that you get in aged whiskey that has been in a barrel.

You can tell from the first whiff that Dark Corner Distillery Moonshine corn whiskey is made from corn. The nose smells like fresh baked cornbread and has a note reminiscent of the smell of taking husks off a corn cob. What’s so amazing about Dark Corner Distillery Moonshine is just how soft and easy it is to drink. You’d think a 100 proof whiskey would pack a hard punch, but Dark Corner Moonshine is soft, smooth, and easy. As with the nose, there are distinct corn notes in the taste along with soft vanilla and light black pepper that gives it a little kick.

Dark Corner Distillery makes their Moonshine corn whiskey in small batches using traditional copper pots with great care and craftsmanship. This care is apparent in the glass, with one of the most affable and easy drinking moonshines on the market.

Corn whiskey is an ideal summer spirit that is easy to drink and doesn’t need a lot of mixing to shine. The best way to enjoy it is to pack a big glass with ice and and then add your whiskey.

Reposado, blanco

Clase Azul – Ultra Premium Tequila

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Reposado, blanco

When a spirits company labels something as ultra-premium, odds are what they really mean is “expensive”. There is no real standard on what can be labeled ultra-premium, and not all ultra-premium spirits are good. In the tequila space, there’s also a category of products whose bottle design and packaging are more of a selling point than what’s in the bottle. Some of the prettiest bottles of tequila are also some of the most unpalatable.

It would be easy then to dismiss Clase Azul as another fancy bottle of expensive tequila chasing after the almighty dollar. But if you did, you’d be missing out on one of the few ultra-premium tequilas that actually delivers.

The Clase Azul Blanco tequila has a very soft and sweet nose with just a hint of pepper. The sweetness of the nose and the undercurrent of spice come together into a nose that is downright seductive. The nose has no bite or vapor whatsoever. The entry for the Clase Azul Blanco matches the nose perfectly. Lightly sweet, fresh agave leads right into a pepper spice which builds to a moderate level, peaks, and then finishes all without losing a step. The balance between sweet and spice here is sublime, and the finish leaves both the sweet agave and pepper spice in a clear invitation for another sip. Priced at $70 a bottle, the Clase Azul Blanco is considerably more expensive than some of our go-to tequilas (Tequila Avion, El Tesoro, and 123 Tequila), but we feel that we’re actually getting what we pay for. If you have a sweet tooth and want a tequila that captures the essence of fresh agave and balances it out with a nice soft pepper, this is the tequila for you.

The Clase Azul Reposado has an equally soft and inviting nose as the blanco. In addition to the sweet, fresh agave and pepper, we get a nice soft oak note as well as subtle caramel in the nose. The entry is soft and sweet with the oak, pepper, caramel, and fresh agave all coming together along with a nice vegetal green pepper note. Things ramp up a little in the midpalate where the black pepper, green pepper, and oak spice all come together. The finish is long and delicious and equally as entrancing as the blanco. At around $80, Clase Azul Reposado doesn’t come cheap, but it is delicious with a packaging that shows great love and care for the spirit inside the bottle.

A great spirit in a great package is a rare combination, but Clase Azul manages to deliver something really special, and for the tequila connoisseur, something to seek out.

Denizen Rum

Denizen Rum – The Fun Guy at the Party

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Denizen Rum

A great party often has someone who seems to get along with everyone, has fun, and helps really set the tone for the evening. Denizen is that in a rum. Made from a blend of charcoal filtered aged rum from Trinidad and funky pot still distilled rum from Jamaica, Denizen Rum is flavorful and affable with superb character.

Jamaican rum is prized for its intense flavor and deep charred sugar notes. In the Denizen Rum blend, the essence of these flavors is captured but made much more accessible with the easy going and light rum from Trinidad. Denizen is blended in Amsterdam, which is a key locale for the rum trade and is home to some legendary rum blenders.

The nose on Denizen Rum is light and clean, with soft sugar cane notes along with hints of tropical fruit including banana. There are no vapors in the nose and it’s sly in its subtlety. The entry is packed with flavor including pineapple, banana, fresh sugar cane, and toasted marshmallow. The flavors here are well stated without being too intense and are fairly consistent throughout the palate. The finish is long with a light tropical passion fruit adding to the mix along with a subtle oak spice and sweet soft powdered sugar. Ultimately Denizen Rum cleans up with a light, cool feeling on the palate, leaving you wanting more.

As delightful as the Denizen Rum is neat, the real magic of the rum is just how mixable it is. Denizen makes a pitch perfect classic daiquiri, works exceptionally well in a mai tai, and gets along with Coke beautifully. There seems no end to Denizen’s mixability.

What’s amazing is that Denizen gives you so much and yet it’s priced ridiculously low at $15.99 a bottle. It’s mind boggling how such a great rum could also be so affordable. Denizen isn’t just great rum, it’s a must have bottle for anyone even remotely interested in making cocktails at home.

Belvedere Lemon Tea

Belvedere Lemon Tea – A Spirited Arnold Palmer

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Belvedere Lemon Tea

Legendary golfer Arnold Palmer is as much known for his amazing golf game as what he drank at the clubhouse after a round of golf. His preference for a drink made from half lemonade and half unsweetened tea was so well known that the drink ultimately bore his name. The “Arnold Palmer” is one of the more popular non-alcoholic cocktail alternatives served today and its popularity continues to rise. It was probably only a matter of time until a liquor company figured out that the flavors from lemon and tea also work well with vodka.

Belvedere Vodka, well known for producing a high quality rye vodka, has put the pieces together with a vodka that’s clearly inspired by the flavors of the legendary Arnold Palmer. While there are many great lemon and citrus vodkas on the market, there are very few good tea ones. Tea is a tricky flavor to work with as it can be easily oversteeped and create a bitter, tannic taste. Rather than just combining tea and lemon, Belvedere has put together a nice grouping of flavors for their Lemon Tea Vodka, including both black and green tea, ginger, chamomile, lemongrass, honey, and lemon. These flavors complement Belvedere’s natural rye spice and help pull together a wonderfully integrated and complex vodka.

Belvedere uses a maceration process to steep their flavors into the vodka and doesn’t add any additional sugars or artificial additives. The result is clear, natural, and true flavors that come together beautifully. Belvedere Lemon Tea Vodka is much more tea forward than lemon. The black and green teas read very clearly on the entry with the lemongrass and chamomile bridging to the citrus in the mid palate. The ginger and rye spice lead out the finish with a nice crisp spice.

One of the really nice things about Belvedere Lemon Tea is that it isn’t too sweet. Belvedere has nailed the most difficult element in a tea spirit, and that’s the tea, leaving room for you to sweeten it with simple syrup and boost the level of citrus with lemon. Belvedere Lemon Tea makes an interesting variation on the Lemon Drop, but it really shines in a spirited tribute to the Arnold Palmer called the Lemon Tea Half & Half, created by mixologist Claire Smith.

Lemon Tea Half & Half
1.5 oz Belvedere Lemon Tea
3 oz black tea
3 oz lemonade

Build over ice and garnish with a lemon wedge. Serve in a highball.

Brugal Extra Dry – An Alternative to Vodka

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Brugal Extra Dry

There’s no secret why vodka is one of the top selling spirits in the world: it’s crisp, clean, and easy to drink. Throw vodka into a glass of ice, add some soda, and you’ve got a quick drink that you don’t have to think about. Vodka by design is meant to be neutral, affable, and generally inconspicuous in drinks. The problem with some vodka is that, by design, they can lack character.

Brugal Rum has just introduced a compelling alternative for vodka drinkers who want the light, easy nature of a more neutral spirit but with a little more character. Brugal Extra Dry Rum is a crisp, clean rum with a light and enjoyable flavor. Like many great rums, Brugal Extra Dry is made from molasses, a byproduct of turning sugar cane into crystallized sugar. Molasses helps impart a nice toasted marshmallow flavor along with vanilla, a hint dark chocolate, and cream. None of the flavors are bold or overly assertive, and the rum lives up to its “extra dry” name with a clean, dry finish that only has hints of sweetness and the suggestion of peppery spice.

Although it’s a white rum, Brugal’s Especial Extra Dry Rum is actually a blend of aged rums aged an average of 2 years. The aged rums are blended specifically to enhance the light and easy characteristics, and then run through a special carbon filtration system three times to strip out the color and refine its clean, dry characteristics.

Brugal Extra Dry is an easy stand-in for the traditional ‘vodka & soda’, but it also goes well in a mojito, daiquiri, and of course in Coke. Brugal Extra Dry is 80 proof (40%) alcohol and is available in select markets including NY, SF, and LA for around $20 a bottle.

Here’s a signature cocktail that shows off Brugal’s easy demeanor:

Brugal Dehumidifier
2 oz. Brugal Extra Dry
½ oz. Fresh Lemon Juice
1 teaspoon superfine sugar
3 dashes Angostura Bitters
5 Mint Leaves
Club Soda

Directions: Combine all ingredients, except bitters and shake with ice. Pour into a Collins glass, top with Club Soda and float 3 dashes of bitters. Garnish with a mint sprig.

Get a complete behind the scenes look at Brugal here.

Bacardi and Coke

Cuba Libre – Beyond The Rum & Coke

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Bacardi and Coke

Bacardi and Coke, or rum and Coke, is one of the most common cocktails served, alongside Jack and Coke, and vodka and soda. A brilliantly simple drink, the rum and coke is actually a simplification of a classic cocktail called the Cuba Libre which dates back to the Spanish American War. During the war Americans packed their ships with Coca-Cola because the traditionally stimulating qualities of the original formula helped in the fight.

In Cuba, rum is the dominant beverage and American soldiers mixed this rum with their Coke and lime to make a deliciously addictive drink. The cocktail formally got its name when in 1898 General Russell used the drink for his toast to celebrate the liberation of Cuba from the Spanish. The toast was “Cuba Libre!” and the name stuck.

During the Cuban missile crisis the drink fell out of favor – no one was really interested in celebrating anything Cuban. The drink became known as Bacardi and Coke, or simply rum and Coke. During this transition the drink was often simplified with the essential lime dropped from the equation, and the Bacardi Gold rum was dropped in favor of the lighter Bacardi Superior.

A good Cuba Libre is more than just throwing rum and Coke in a glass. By assembling the ingredients in a specific order and using an aged rum like Bacardi Gold, you can create something that transcends the simple rum and Coke.

Ice tends to pick up the flavor and aroma of the first thing it comes in contact with, so a good Cuba Libre starts with seasoning, or tattooing, the ice with the lime as your first step. The lime is followed by the rum and then topped off with Coke and a gentle stir. The difference between the ingredients in a Cuba Libre and a rum and Coke aren’t dramatic, but when properly prepared, the Cuba Libre picks up a wonderful fresh citrus quality that really balances out the drink.

Cuba Libre
2oz Bacardi Gold Rum
4oz Coca Cola
1/2 oz of Fresh Squeezed Lime Juice

In a tall glass with ice, add the lime juice to the ice. Add the rum and then top it with the Coke. Stir gently and garnish with a lime wedge.

NOLET'S Reserve with glass

Nolet’s Reserve – The $700 Gin

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While you may not be familiar with the Nolet’s name, you are probably very familiar with their major product, Ketel One Vodka. The Nolet’s distillery in Schiedam, Netherlands pumps out massive volumes of the popular vodka (millions of cases a year). Alongside that mammoth output is a small still, quietly producing some of the best premium gins on the market.

Nolet’s Silver isn’t the $700 Reserve gin (it comes in closer to $40), but it’s a beautiful, soft, floral gin that makes a perfect Martini. What makes Nolet’s Silver stand out is a unique blend of botanicals including turkish rose, peach, and raspberry. It’s an extremely floral gin but manages to balance out its flavors in a delicious combination that can be enjoyed neat or in many classics including the Negroni, Bijou, or Ramos Gin Fizz.

Nolet’s Reserve builds on the foundation of Nolet’s Silver, adding saffron and verbena to the mix. Saffron is more expensive per ounce than gold and the copious use of it in Nolet’s Reserve helps make it one of the most expensive gins on the market – $700 a bottle! The saffron lends Nolet’s Reserve a deep, warm spice and also seems to impact the color of the gin, which is light gold.

In addition to saffron, Nolet’s Reserve brings verbena into the mix which brings a slightly bitter note that combines with the saffron to envelope all the other flavors of the gin. The result is a nice complexity that makes Nolet’s Reserve one of the world’s great sipping gins.

Nolet’s Reserve weighs in at a whopping 104.6 proof, but surprisingly it’s extremely soft and round with a deliciously thick mouthfeel. The entry of the Nolet’s Reserve is bright and floral with the deep, warm saffron spice. All the delicious flavor notes from the Silver are here but presented completely differently. The sweet fruit notes move to the background to enable the more savory and spicy notes to emerge. The floral notes which weave in and out of the spice are both turkish rose and lavender, balanced beautifully with the other flavors including juniper, citrus, and verbena. The Nolet’s Reserve has a long, deep finish with lingering saffron spice.

Nolet’s Reserve is handmade in small batches, personally supervised by master distiller Carolus Nolet, Sr. Only a few hundred bottles are released each year and they are all hand signed and numbered by Carolus Nolet, Sr. himself.

At $700 a bottle, Nolet’s Reserve may be out of reach for most imbibers, but it’s hard to think of a more intense and complex gin experience. If you are passionate about gin and have the dough to spend, Nolet’s Reserve is simply amazing.

Ti Punch

Ti-Punch – Somewhere between a Shot and a Cocktail

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Ti Punch

Behind every successful spirit is a great cocktail. Tequila has the Margarita, cachaca the Caipirinha, gin the Martini, and rum the Daiquiri. For rhum agricole, the cocktail that captures its essence and is essential to its success is the Ti-Punch.

Ti is actually the Creole word for petit, or small, and helps define this drink more as a quick, small drink rather than a full 3-4 ounce cocktail. The Ti-Punch has its origins as a drink adapted on the island by Indian workers brought to the island of Martinique after the abolition of slavery.

Originally the drink included tea, cinnamon, sugar, lime, and rhum agricole. The drink became popular on the island and was simplified by dropping the tea and cinnamon. The Ti-Punch shares the same structure as many other classic rum drinks (like the daiquiri and mojito), namely rum, sugar, and lime. What makes the Ti-Punch unique is that it is often adjusted to the taste of the individual drinker.

A basic Ti-Punch is:

Around 1 1/2 oz of white rhum agricole (Nisson, JM, Clement, or Coeur de Canne work great)
Some measure of lime or lime discs (1-2 depending on taste)
1/8-1/4 oz of sugar or cane syrup

Ice is optional, but it helps soften the rhum, which is often 100 or 110 proof.

Ti-Punch has so many subtle variations in its preparation, it’s hard to capture all of them. One of the key variations is the lime. Some serve the Ti-Punch with a lime disc, a cross section of the outer peel about the side of silver dollar with the smallest amount of the actual heart of the lime included. Others use actual slices of lime of varying size. There isn’t a right or wrong way to do it.

Sugar is another element up for variation for the Ti-Punch. Traditionally either sugar or cane syrup is used, the amount depending on how sweet the imbiber wants the drink to be. Alternatively, crystallized cane sugar or sugar in the raw is used.

The only real constant point in the preparation is that the sugar and lime are added first and given a chance to combine before the rhum is added. The amount of rhum added as well as the type again vary (including various proof white and aged rhums) depending on imbiber. Ti-Punch is considered a small sipping drink, not really even quite a cocktail, and most Ti-Punches have less than two ounces of alcohol in them.

After the rhum is added, the Ti-Punch is then swizzled with a swizzle stick, called a lele. Swizzling a Ti-Punch both mixes the rum, sugar, and lime together as well as aerates the drink, making it even more aromatic.

In Martinique, the Ti-Punch is often served deconstructed and you are given the opportunity to assemble it yourself. The French phrase for this ritual is “chacun prépare sa propre mort,” which literally translates to “each one prepares their own death.”

The Ti-Punch is an ideal way to begin the exploration of rhum agricole. It’s a perfect drink when you want a little something, and a nice alternative to doing a shot or getting a full cocktail.

The Classic Daiquiri - Rum's Perfect Cocktail

The Classic Daiquiri – Rum’s Perfect Cocktail

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The Classic Daiquiri - Rum's Perfect Cocktail

The rum daiquiri is one of world’s great drinks, yet it’s often prepared so poorly that you’d never know it. Somehow, someone, somewhere got it into their heads that a daiquiri should be thrown into a blender with lots of sugar, and lots of fruit, and made into something closer to a slurpee than a cocktail. In reality, a properly made classic daiquiri is a beautifully elegant and delicious drink.

While we don’t know exactly where or how the classic daiquiri was invented – many countries and bars lay claim to its origin – the drink came somewhere out of the Caribbean where sugarcane, rum, and limes are plentiful. As with many great classic cocktails, the daiquiri is made with three simple ingredients: rum, lime, and sugar. This basic structure is nearly identical with other tropical rum classics like the Ti Punch, Caipirinha, and Mojito (which adds mint to the mix).

A great classic daiquiri is all about balancing lime, sugar, and strong rum. It’s extremely easy for one of these elements to overpower the daiquiri, so when making a daiquiri it is essential to be precise with your measurements and always use a jigger. It’s also extremely important to use fresh lime juice. Using bottled lime juice will turn your drink into something barely palatable. This difference is as significant as the one between a fast food hamburger and a burger at a steakhouse.

The Classic Daiquiri

1 1/2 oz Rum
3/4 oz simple syrup
3/4 oz fresh squeezed lime juice

Shake with ice and strain into a coupe glass. Garnish with a lime.

The best place to start with the classic daiquiri is with a white rum like Bacardi Supreme, Brugal Especial Extra Dry, Angostura Reserva, or Denizen Rum. Starting with a white rum shows off the dry quality of this cocktail and makes it a perfect aperitif cocktail that holds its own against other great aperitifs like the martini.

The daiquiri can also stand in as an ideal after dinner drink if you choose a more complex rum like Banks Five Island Rum or a darker rum like Appleton Estates – you get something that tastes completely different. Using darker sugars for your simple syrup like demerara also dramatically transforms the drink.

The daiquiri may have gotten a bad rap from its time spent as a blended slushy, but it is truly one of the world’s great cocktails, one that when prepared correctly will impress even the most picky of imbibers.

 

 

Photo by Jackson Stakeman

Taste of Heaven, Absinthe Verte artistic shot

Kilian – Spirits and Fragrance Collide

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One of the things that’s alluring about spirits is the fragrant bouquet of aromas that emanate from the glass. It’s easy to get lost in a great cognac, whisky or rum. Kilian Hennessy, grandson of one of the founders of the iconic cognac brand, is no stranger to spirits and their aromas. Kilian grew up in the distilleries and cellars in Cognac, surrounded by a symphony of scents. After studying with some of the great perfumers in the world, including Christian Dior, Paco Rabanne, Alexander McQueen, and Giorgio Armani, Kilian launched his own line of fragrances called simply “by Kilian.”

By Kilian has a wide selection of fragrances pulling from a dazzling array of rare essential oils. Many of his fragrances are inspired by the cognac-soaked barrels from Kilian’s youth, but some of them draw direct inspiration from other spirits.

A Taste of Heaven – Absinthe Verte is a glowing green fragrance inspired by absinthe. The fragrance is an ethereal blend of aromas of floral notes, incense, and moss. It doesn’t have the strong anise note you’d associate with absinthe, but again, the fragrance is more inspired by the universe of absinthe than the spirit itself.

Straight To Heaven – White Crystal captures a lot of rum characteristics with sweet vanilla high notes mixing with a wooded oak undertone backed by a deep musk. The fragrance actually contains “Martinican Rum Absolut” and smells a lot like someone who just came back from a rhum agricole distillery.

It’s extremely rare for a fragrance company to list their ingredients, but by Kilian not only lists them, they’ve published their complete formula for each fragrance on their site. Because of their high essential oil content, by Kilian fragrances are extremely bright, vibrant, and long lasting. Their aromas are strong but never overpowering.

By Kilian fragrances are considered unisex with the more floral fragrances balanced out with wood or musk, and the more wooded ones with sweet or floral notes. For men looking for less floral scents, both Straight to Heaven and Back to Black are slightly more masculine, and both exceptional. The fragrances come in 50ml / 1.7 fl oz refillable sprays, a solid perfume, and a 30ml / 1 oz refillable travel spray set that is extraordinarily well designed.

margarita

The Classic Margarita – A Perfect Drink for Cinco de Mayo

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Tequila, lime, and agave – that’s all you need to make a perfect margarita. While there are many ways of making a margarita, including using triple sec, a mix, or throwing it into a blender, the best margarita you’ll ever have has just three simple ingredients.

This classic margarita was revived in San Francisco at Tommy’s Mexican Restaurant, a little hole in the wall place you’d never expect to be the epicenter for one of the best drinks in the world. Behind the bar is Julio Bermejo, one the the ambassadors of Tequila in the US, and the margarita is his calling card.

To make a good margarita, you need good ingredients. The better the tequila you start with, the better your margarita is going to be. It’s important to find a tequila that is made from 100% agave for your margarita. Tequilas labeled “Gold” are usually made from only 50% agave, and the rest is basically rum. Tequilas which make great margaritas include Pueblo Viejo, Don Julio, Siete Leguas, El Tesoro, and Tequila Avion.

A good margarita is all about proportions, so it’s important to carefully measure out each ingredient. Also, fresh lime juice is essential, and it takes almost no time to juice a lime. The difference between fresh lime and bottled lime juice is extremely noticeable.

Here’s the recipe for the best margarita you’ll ever have:

Tommy’s Margarita

2 oz Blanco Tequila (Tequila Avion, Don Julio, or Patron)
1 oz lime juice (must be fresh squeezed)
1 oz agave syrup (diluted 1:1 nectar/water)

Shake and strain over cracked ice (no need to salt the rim).

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Belvedere Intense Unfiltered Vodka – Naked Rye Vodka

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When it comes to good vodka, what a vodka is made from is often more important than how many times it has been distilled. Vodka is commonly made from wheat, rye, potato, grapes, or corn. There’s also a huge segment of the vodka category made from the nonspecific “neutral grain spirits,” which can be any fermentable grain including soybeans, grasses, and even agricultural waste. Each source material has its own individual characteristics and can greatly impact your vodka drinking experience: wheat based vodkas tend to be more soft and round, potato vodka tends to be more sweet, and rye vodka has more spice. When picking a vodka, especially a premium vodka, it’s generally best to stick to ones which state their source grain on the label.

A vodka’s flavor and character is determined not only from what it’s made from, but also how it was distilled and what is used to filter or ‘polish’ it. Vodka is often run through charcoal, coconut husks, lava rocks, and even diamonds in an effort to make it more smooth and clean.

When you start with high quality ingredients, fermented well and well distilled, it reduces the need to filter it. Belvedere has shown great confidence in their rye with Belvedere Intense Unfiltered, an 80 proof vodka which showcases the character of the rye grain.

There’s a slight spice to the nose on the Belvedere Intense Unfiltered Vodka even though the overall character is soft and clean. The entry is slightly sweet with a soft powdered sugar note. Because it’s unfiltered, it has a nice smooth and round mouthfeel that is very pleasant. In the midpalate things really ramp up with a nice rye spice note that comes in early and then continues to intensify through the midpalate. The rye spice is joined with some heat which leads to a nice finish. There’s the signature ‘pin prick’ on the tongue which you find in really good Polish or Russian Vodka.

While still a clean vodka, Belvedere Intense Unfiltered manages to deliver some nice flavor and excellent spice.

Good rye vodkas like Belvedere Intense Unfiltered stand up well in the traditional vodka soda, where their spice shines through, but it’s in a drink like the Moscow Mule where the rye character really dazzles.

Moscow Mule:

1/2 oz fresh squeezed lime juice
2 oz Belvedere Unfiltered Rye Vodka
4 -6 ounces ginger beer

Add lime juice (which is about ½ a lime) to a Collins glass or mule mug, add ice, drop the squeezed ½ lime into the glass. Add the vodka, top with ginger beer, and serve.